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Happy Birthday, Harry Potter: How His Birthday Evolved in the Movies and Sparked Reddit Threads

Did the Harry Potter films quietly shift Harry’s birthday? Reddit fans weigh in on changes, theories, and that iconic cake.
Editorial
Updated:- 2025-07-31, 16:34 IST

Parents Lily and James Potter welcomed their newborn into the world on July 31st. Their son Harry Potter, The Boy Who Lived, would go on to become the saviour of the entire wizarding world.

Harry Potter, the beloved protagonist of the iconic book and film series, is so cherished worldwide that his birthday is celebrated in a variety of ways across the globe.

Read: 6 Iconic Harry Potter Book Moments We Missed in the Films, But Hope HBO’s TV Series Finally Includes

His birthday is shown to be on July 31, but Reddit users now have varying theories that revolve around his birthday.

Harry’s Birthday Iconic Pink Birthday Cake

His birthday features prominently across the series. One of the most iconic scenes is in the first movie where Harry writes happy birthday to himself, followed by Hagrid storming into their island house, with a pink cake.

Inisder-2The pink cake, with the writing 'Happee Birthdae Harry', shown in the movie, has become a pop culture symbol in itself.

However, one Reddit user points out how Hagrid spelt everything fine in the book, and this was a conscious decision to alter it in the movies. They argue that the makers perhaps wanted to show Hagrid as being dumb.

Also read: Harry Potter TV Series First Look Out: Dominic McLaughlin's Harry Gets My Thumbs-Up; Here's Why

People commenting pointed out that it was an attempt to show him as endearing instead. “It's to disarm the audience further about the big, scary giant man who can bend a gun with one hand and gave Dudley a pig tail,” said one user.

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Does Harry’s Birthday Change On-screen?

Although July 31 is prominently mentioned as being Harry’s birthday, something about the movies seemed odd, pointed out one Reddit thread.

On multiple occasions, Harry is shown to be going to Hogwarts immediately after his birthday, even though official sessions begin at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry on September 1.Insider-1 (17)

In the first movie, as described above, Hagrid rescues Harry and they go to Diagon Alley, and then to King's Cross station to board Hogwarts Express (the train that took them to school). In Chamber of Secrets, the second movie, he’s rescued by Ron, Fred and George on his birthday. Together, they fly to The Burrow, Ron’s home. The next morning, they go to Diagon Alley for supplies and then to school.

In both cases, months are not shown to pass by, making it seem like Harry’s birthday is sometime in late August, as was pointed out in this Reddit thread.

Some users commented saying nothing happens in those months, so they skipped those months.

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